This month, Rita Ora joined a group of celebs—including Kerry Washington and Ellie Goulding—who have openly talked about going to therapy. In an interview with Cosmopolitan UK, the pop star said she suffers from anxiety and panic attacks, and she's not ashamed to say she gets help. "I'm not scared to admit that I have had therapy," Ora told the mag. "I have someone I speak to once a week."

There's still a stigma attached to therapy, which may prevent people from seeking out professional help when they need it. But data shows that therapy can really make a significant difference. According to Mental Health America (MHA), the majority of people with depression who seek out effective treatment see improvement and even remission—but only about a third of people suffering from depression get help from a mental health professional. MHA says those who don't seek help often “believe depression isn’t serious, that they can treat it themselves or that it is a personal weakness rather than a serious medical illness.” But that's far from the truth.

Here, we debunk six big myths about therapy:

Therapy is only for depressed people or "crazy" people.

Therapy is for a range of people with a spectrum of different mental health issues, from serious mental illnesses, like depression, to just general stress. Laura Mufson, Ph.D., a professor of psychiatry in the Department of Psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center, tells SELF that people often seek out therapy if they're just feeling distressed, unhappy, or if they're not performing well in their relationships or career.

"You don’t have to be crazy, and it’s actually a sign of good insight into yourself to know that maybe you could use a little bit of help to get through a stressful event or help you address a particular problem," Mufson says.

Going to therapy means you're weak.

Seeking therapy and help is—like Mufson said—actually a sign of insight and courage. Matthew Goldfine, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist in New Jersey and New York, has a great analogy.

"If you were having trouble with your asthma, you wouldn’t hesitate to use an inhaler or go see a doctor," Goldfine tells SELF. "But yet if you were feeling depressed or anxious or were struggling after a death in the family or after a breakup, suddenly the conception is that you’re crazy or weak or that you don’t need therapy."

To Goldfine, someone's ability to say, "here's an issue, let me fix it, let me get some expert's thought and opinions and guidance," is a huge sign of strength—not weakness.

No one else is going to therapy.

Goldfine says lots of people go to therapy, but people just don't always talk about it openly. Some people like to keep it private (which is totally OK to do!), but when people speak out about it, it helps reduce the stigma. When people know they're not alone in having mental health issues, it makes it safer for other people to talk about it and make the decision to see a therapist, too.

"I always tell people you’d be stunned about how many people in your life see a therapist and a psychologist and take medication," Goldfine says. "The reality is that many, many people actually have problems and are getting help for their problems, they just don’t talk about it that much."

You don't need to pay to talk to someone if you have family and friends to rely on.

It's great if you have social support, but therapists can offer more than just a listening ear—they're professionally trained with the skills to help you solve your problems, be those negative thought patterns, general stress, or something more. "It's not just talking to someone who's listening to your problems, it’s someone who can help you solve the problems, so to speak," Goldfine says.

Marlynn Wei, M.D., a board-certified psychiatrist and therapist, adds that a therapist can offer an objective opinion, which is important. When speaking with friends and family, you might not express all your thoughts and feelings because of your close relationship. And therapists know how to specifically diagnose and treat psychological issues, and psychiatrists can prescribe medication if necessary, too.

"A therapist doesn’t have any kind of bias in the sense of having an ulterior motive or wanting to sway you a certain way," Wei tells SELF. "Therapists can also provide other important tools and skills, like cognitive behavioral or mindfulness skills...and these are tools that people can use long term, even years later when they are no longer in therapy."

You can't trust therapists with your secrets.

On the contrary, therapists are *legally bound* to keep what's said in your sessions private. "Therapists are bound by confidentiality legally and professionally," Wei says. "You know that it’s 100 percent legally and ethically confidential, which I think gives you an openness that you don’t have in any other type of relationship."

There are, however, exceptions to confidentiality. If a patient threatens to hurt themselves or someone else imminently, for example, Wei says most states are required to disclose that information to other health providers or even law enforcement. The American Psychological Association offers more information on confidentiality and explains exceptions here.

You'll be in therapy forever.

Therapy isn't supposed to last a lifetime. Most forms of therapy—like cognitive behavioral therapy, which Goldfine practices—typically involve less than a year of treatment. This is usually in the form of a weekly one-hour session. Goldfine says he schedules new patients for 12 to 20 sessions, which ends up being around just three to five months of therapy.

"I often say that if you’re in therapy 10 years from now, I’m not doing my job because we’re not getting better," he says. "Ideally, you want to have your treatment, learn your ways of dealing with things, overcome issues, find better coping skills, and then go on with your life."